Apparatus for measuring and indicating blood-pressure.



F. A. FAUGHT & C. J. FILLING. APPARATUS FOR MEASURING AND INDIGATING BLOOD PRESSURE. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 20, 1910.

Patented Mar. 3, 1914.

a SHEETS-SHEET 1.

I lNVENTOR-S wlTIvEssEs I By 1a 4 v ATTORNEY F. A. FAUGHT & 0.,J. FILLING. APPARATUS FOR MEASURING AND INDIGATING BLOOD PRESSURE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 20, 1910. 1,089, 1 22. Patented Mar. 3, 19M

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

INVENTORS I w ATTORNEY F. A. FAUGHT & O. J. PILLING. APPARATUS FOR MEASURING AND INDIGATING BLOOD PRESSURE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 20, 1910. A 1 0 9 122 Patented M2113, 1914.

3 SHEET8-SHEBT 3.

A TTORNEY i of a patient, an

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

rJaANcIs AsHLriY FAUGI-IT AND cHAnLEs .r. PILLING, or rHILADnLrnIA, PENN- sYLVANIA, AssIoNons no sooner: r. rILLINo AND soN ooMrANY', or PHILA- DELPHIA, rNNNsYLvA IA, A CORPORATION or PENNSYLVANIA.

ArrAnA'rus FOR MEASURING AND INDIOATING moon-rhinestone.

nosenee.

Application filed September 20, 1610. Box-lamb. liflitflgi. I

To all whom it ma, concern:

Be it known t at we, Francis Asnmrr Faust-m and Crrannns J. PILLING, citizens of the United States, residing in the cit of Philadelphia, State of Pennsylvania, "lave jointly invented certain new and useful improvements in A paratus for Measur ng and Indicating B cod-Pressure, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reterence being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a. part of this s ecification.

Our invention relates to apparatus de-- signed for use in medical and pathological diagnosis, for measuring and indicating the degree of blood pressure in an artery at the human body, to determine it as a clinical factor in aid at correct diagnosis, such determination being of great value in, the treatment of diseases of the blood, blood'vas cular system, and kidneys. lleretofore such determinations have been and are now come monly made by instruments in which the blood pressure is indicated by producing an air pressure on a column ot' mercury, as in a manometer or the like, and causing such air pressure to equal or rather slightly en ceed the blood pressure in the artery, the ac tual pressure of which is indicated on the manometer scale at the moment oi its re lease after constriction as by a tourniquet for example.

Unr present invention is an apparatus to determine such blood pressure by means embodying the principle of a rotatable dial carrying spindle actuated, through appropriate mechanisn'i, by air compression devices, the scale on the movable dial member being marked to correspond with a manometer pressure scale.

In the accompanying drawings illustrat' ing our invention :--I*igure 1 is an elevation of the complete apparatus and its operating adjuncts shown applied to the arm d ready for use. Fig. 2 is a section through the constriction device, on the line o t of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged plan view of the rotatable dial-actuating deyice, with the superposed fixed dial plate which may form thfe outside protecting cover of the cont'aihing'. casin removed. Fig. 4 1s a plan view or the fire dial plate, detached, and Fig. i5 is a section thereof. Flg. 6 1s a plan v1ew oi the rotatable dial, detached, and Fig. "(,a'eection thereof. Fig. 8 1s a longitudinal section, partly in eleva tion, of the air compressed device including lts containing closed air-ohamber5 and Fig. 9 is a plan thereott with cover removed. Fig. 10 is a vertical. section, of the dial-spindle actuating device; Fig. 11 is a lan view 0t part of the same, illustrating the segmental rack: and its linlt mechanism, actuatin the dial spindle through the toothed pinion thereon; and l ig. 12 is a side elevation.

thereof. Fig. 13 is a section of the dial casing and part out its containing mechanism, illustrating some parts not s own in the other views. Fig. :Lt is a section at the can pansible air-tube, in normal state; Fig. 15 a like view of same in expanded state; and

Fig. 16 is a section, artly in elevation, of the air-releasing nee le valve on the lower end of the air-compressing piston cylinder.

Referring now to said drawings, the con striction element is shown in Fig. l and is of a form and character well known as a constriction cuii' and consists, briefly stated, oi: an outer leather band 1, with ties toning straps 2, 9; while inside the straps is a detached expansible rubber lining formed like a bag, indicated at 3 in Fig. 2 and by dotted lines in Fig. 1, and leading there from and through the outer leather cult is a rubber tube '10.

The air-compressing piston cylinder is of common construction, and consists briefly stated, of a cylinder 5, having a pair of enterior finger holds 6, a piston controlled by a spring 7, and actuated by a piston rod 8 provided with a handle 9.

On the lower end of the piston cylinder is a nipple supplied with a needle valve 11, shown in section in Fig. it. An ordinary rubber tube 10 leads from the constriction cufi' to the nipple 19 of one air-port of the til) elevation in Fig. 1 we Wlll now describe in,

detail; as it constitutes a wholly novel element in the new combination with the other and individually-old elements already described.

The casing is shown in Fig. 13 as comprising a shallow cylinder 15 with a closed basal head 16, and interiorly a false bottom 17 supported on and secured to pillars 18 by screws 22; and the casing is detachably closed by a top head 19 in the form of a removable cap with a flange rim 21, having a segmental opening 20 (see Figs. 4 and 5). These specific forms are however preferential only, as various other forms may be utilized. The longer are of this segmental opening is marked at its exact centerwith a zero mark, as shown in said Fig. 4.

The false bottom 17 of the casing is cut away, as at 23, see Fig. 3, to admit a closed chamber 24 from the outer head of which proceed the two air-tube nipples 12 and 14. The other head of the chamber is apertured at 25 to freely allow required movement of a rod 26. lVithin the closed chamber 24. is mounted a bellows 27 consisting of convexed spaced plates, apertured centrally and connected together at the coinciding rims of adjacent apertures so as to form an operatively air-tight collapsible body operating as an air-compressed device. Its convex plates are corrugated annularly to prevent collapse. Its upper plate bears against the upper head of the chamber 24 and its lower plate bears against the outer or lower head of said chamber. The lower end of rod 26 is fastened to the lower plate of said bellows device and its end projects through the aperture 25 as before stated.

Pivotally connected to the free end of rod 26 is a series of jointed links 28, 29 and 30, (see Fig. 11); the link 28 having a fixed bearing 31. The link 30 is slotted to admit the end of a pin 33 by which itis guided in its oscillation, the upper end of said pin being fixed in a superposed bearing 34 (removed from Fig. 11 and shown in plan view in Fig. 3). A segmental rack 36 forms the free terminal end of the leverlink 30. A disk 32 embraces the pin 33,

and an adjusting screw 35 in the slot of the lever 30 enables adjustment to be made in the arc of oscillation of the segmental rack. A rotatable spindle 37 has a lower bearing in the false bottom 17, and carries a pinion 38 which meshes with the said segmental rack 36. A spring 39 is coiled around the spindle 37 near its base and operates to cause a partial rotation of the spindle to.

normal position, that is to say, after it has been partially rotated in the opposite direc tion, in the operation of the apparatus, thrpugh the movement of said segmental rac r.

The operation of the apparatus, as a whole, is as follows: The constriction cuff being applied as usual over an accessible artery, as on the upper arm, see Fig. 1, the air-pump piston is depressed, repeatedly, to drive a. column of air under pressure so created, through the flexible corrugated airtube, to the inlet nipple 14 of the closed air-chamber 24, wherein it operates, as the air-pressure rises, by externally acting on the bellows to collapse them and thereby actuate the rod 26 and connected dial-actuating mechanism, but the compressed airpressure extends out through discharge nipple 12 and connecting tube 10, to the constriction device. This air-compression device is exceedingly sensitive and it is important that the air-pressure should be delivered constantly and not intermittently -nor with sudden shock, hence a corrugated rubber tube 13 is employed between the initial source of air supply and the dialactuating mechanism, with the result that the tube 13 which in normal condition is shown in section in Fig. 14, is first expanded by the pressure of the air-current to the form shown in section in Fig. 15, hence absorbing the shock and eliminating the impact efiect which would otherwise be imposed on the dial-actuating mechanism. Increase of the air pressure, in the manner stated, will cause a partial rotation of the dial spindle, carrying its scale figures into marking relation to the zero mark on the fixed dial plate, while the constriction cuff is being inflated. \Vhen constriction of the artery is complete, and ascertained by noting the absence of any perceptible pulse. then the operator releases the excess of compressed air by moving the screw 4 of the needle-valve (Fig. 16), opening passage 11 therein, until the first pulse beat is felt, at which moment the rotatable dial, relatively to zero mark on the dial plate, will indicate the exact normal pressure of blood in the artery. The observation having been made, and the air fully released, the spring on the dial spindle causes a partial rotation of it, in the opposite direction, carrying with it the dial, to normal position, ready tit? for any repetition of the operation when desired.

v Having thus described our invention, we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent a 1. Apparatus for measuring andindicatmg arterial blood pressure comprising, in combination, the following instrumentalities, namely, a source of air supply, a constriction device, a mechanically "opera-ting pressure gage interposed between said elements, a plurality of independent tubular means 0 eratively connecting said ga e devicewit the source of air supply an with the constriction device through said pressure gage, and a sensitive release valve governing said tubular means, said ressure ga e comprising a substantially c osed air 0 amber with dial actuating mechanism mounted therein adapted to be actuated in both directions by the increase and decrease respectively in pressure of the volume of air on its passage through said air chamber in opposite directions alternately.

2. Apparatus for measuring and indicat ing arterial blood pressure consisting of the combination with a source of air supply and a constriction device of a mechanically operating pressure gage interposed between said elements and comprising a substantially closed air chamber with air inlet and di charge ports, independent tubular connections between the source of air supply and one of said ports and between the other of said ports and the constriction. device, said ga 'e element including dial actuating mechamsm actuated by rise and :tall in pressure of the air passing through said air chamber in both directions, and a sensitive valve governing the release of the pressure therein to reduce it to equilibrio with the arterial pressure.

3. Apparatus for measuring and indicating arterial blood pressure comprising in combination a source of air supply, a constriction device, a release valve, a mechanically operating pressure gage includin a substantially closed air chamber and a ial actuating mechanism therein adapted to be actuated in both directions b rise and tall in air ressure in said cham er, a tubular connection between said air chamber and the constriction device and a flexible tube which is corrugated in cross section and directly connects said air chamber of the pressure gage with the primary source of air supply.

4-. Apparatus of the class recited comprisin a fixed dial plate, a dial, a rotatable spindle carryin said dial, and air-actuated mechanism wit in the casing operating to rotate said dial spindle said mechanism including a closed chamber having air-inlet and discharge ports and operating primarily as a passageway for compressed air, a bellows device within the chamber actuated by compressed air passing through said cham her, and connecting actuating mechanism between said bellows device and said dialcarrying spindle, operating to impart a rotary movement to the dial relatively to the dial plate. p

Anapparatus of the class recited comprising in combination a containing casing, a fixed dial plate having a segmental opening, a disk-shaped pressure-scale dial, disposed in operatlve relation to said fixed dial plate, a rotatable spindle on which said dial is mounted, compressed-air actuated mechanism including a bellows device and a closed chamber therefor, mounted in said casing,

mechanism, actuated by said bellows device to cause a partial rotation of said spindle in one direction, said mechanism also including means to cause an opposite rotative movement of the spindle to normal position when the supply of compressed air acting on the bellows is released.

6. An apparatus of the class described comprising a casing, a bellows chamber, said chamber having a plurality of openings in a wall thereof, a pair of nipples in said openings adapted to lead a volume oi compressed air to and from said chamber, a metallic bellows in said chamber adapted to be actuated by said volume of compressed air, a rod and a connected series of links including a segmental raclr, actuated by said bellows, a rotatable spindle with a pinion thereon meshin with said rack, a dial mounted on said spindle, and a superposed dial plate in operative relation to said dial.

't. An apparatus of the class recited comprising in combination a containing casing, a dial-plate, a dial mounted in operative relation thereto, a rotatable spindle carrying said dial, a pinion on the spindle, mechanism including a segmental rack meshing with said pinion, to rotate the spindle in one direction, resilient means to restore the dial to normal position, means to vary itsarc of rotation, a closed air-chamber, a plurality of tubular nipples adapted to lead compressed air to and from said chamber, a metallic bellows in said chamber actuated solely by compressed air admitted to said chamber, connecting actuating devices between said bellows and the mechanism aforesaid which directly impart rotative movement to the dial spindle.

8. Apparatus of the class recited, comprising in combination a containing casing, a dial and dial-plate, means to operatively support and to impart a rotary motion to said dial, means to create a volume of compressed air and actuating devices adapted to im art the motion of said bellows-plates to said dial-actuating mechanism. g

as the sole means of directly-operating said dial-actuating mechanism, said means comprising a closed air-chamber provided with a pair of tubular nipples adapted to lead a -In testimony whereof, we have hereunto volume of compressed air to and from the aflixed our signatures this sixth day of Sepsame, a metallic bellows device in said cham- I tember A. D. 1910.

her composed ofa series of pairs of centrally-apertured convex lates, united at UGHT' their rims in oppositelyis osed relation,

forming a series of air-chem ers communi- Witnesses: eating with each other throu h said coin- A. M. BIDDLE, aiding central apertures, wit connecting R. A. DUNLAP. 

